Pursuant to Ministerial Resolution no. 10/M/159489 dated January 28, 2009, 15 new species have been introduced to the national list of approved plant varieties in Saudi Arabia.  With the new additions, the national list now includes the following varieties:

NATIONAL LIST (Listed by Common Name)

Apple (New)

Cauliflower

Mango (New)

Peas

Orange (New)

Garlic

Lemon (New)

Wheat

Olive (New)

Barley

Melon (New)

Persem

Beet (New)

Date Palm

Okra (New)

Watermelon

Pepper (New)

Grapes

Beans (New)

Potatoes

Carrots (New)

Tomatoes

Eggplant (New)

Cucumber

Corn

Onion

Peach

Apricots

Squash and Cucurbits

Roses

By way of background, filing of plant variety applications in Saudi Arabia is possible under law no. 159 issued on July 5, 2004. A maintenance fee is due annually and is payable during the first 3 months of each year following the year the plant variety application was filed. The protection term is for 25 years from the date of filing for trees and grapevines, and 20 years for other agricultural products. The filing requirements of a plant variety application are as follows:

1. Denomination of the variety.
2. Full disclosure of the origin of the variety and the method of breeding.
3. A detailed description of the consecutive stages of the choice and propagation processes which were used to breed the variety.
4. Proof of the novelty of the variety, in the sense that the variety has not been sold or otherwise disposed of for purposes of exploitation for more than one year in Saudi Arabia, or more than four years in any foreign jurisdiction (or six years in the case of trees).
5. Proof of the uniformity of the variety in the sense that any variations are describable, predictable, and commercially acceptable.
6. Proof of the stability of the variety in the sense that the variety, when reproduced, will remain unchanged with regard to its essential and distinctive characteristics within a reasonable degree of commercial reliability.
7. Proof of the distinctiveness of the variety, in the sense that the variety is clearly distinguishable from any other publicly known variety.
8. Illustrations of the variety, if they are necessary to identify it, along with a brief description.

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